Favorite Schools

Favorite Teams

Why school nutritionists are fighting healthy meals; more props for Oregon wine in a can: Table Talk

School lunches.JPG

This 2012 file photo shows a healthy chicken salad school lunch at a middle school in Rotterdam, N.Y. A House committee last week endorsed a GOP plan to allow some schools to opt out of healthier school meal standards. It's a move that's supported by the School Nutrition Association.
(The Associated Press)

Why school nutritionists are fighting healthier meals: In the last few weeks, there's been a growing fight in Washington, D.C., over school lunch programs and efforts to scrap the USDA's nutrition standards. One surprising opponent of healthier school meals is the School Nutrition Association, the the organization that represents the interests of "lunch ladies." The group has come out in support of attempts to derail the nutrition standards. Food Politics' Marion Nestle looks at how this conundrum came about. It's a complicated web of lobbyists, influence from big food companies who make much of the prepackaged, processed food that many schools serve, and partisan posturing inside the Beltway.

Another score for wine in a can: A few weeks ago, wine writer Katherine Cole took a look at Union Wine Company, the Oregon winery that's producing pinot noir and pinot gris in cans. Now it's been introduced in New York, and Slate says it's "not bad." Here's their take: "Poured into a glass, it tasted identical to the same wine poured out of a glass bottle. However, guzzling directly out of the can (if you're feeling classy) doesn't do the wine any favors: You do get a bit of a tinny taste, just as you do when drinking any other beverage from a can."

Food finds around the web: Here are some food morsels worth chewing on.

Everything you think you know about how a microwave oven works is wrong. (Wonder How To)

8 brain-boosting snacks you should keep at the office. (Women's Health)